Freedom 3/20, review w/ kids and pics

[AnneinSand]

We went on Freedom of the Seas over spring break. This was the week before Easter and when many many schools are off for spring break so we expected it to be swarmed with kids. We were traveling with our 1 and 3 year old daughters, my parents (70s), my brother , his wife (30s), their three kids (7, 5 and 5), my best friend and her boyfriend (30s).

 

We flew down to Orlando on Sat morning and stayed at the Comfort Inn Cocoa Beach which had a package that included transportation from the airport to the hotel, then to the cruise ship and then back to the airport after the cruise. The hotel was fine. Nothing fancy but it was clean and comfortable and the pool was a hit with the kids. It is one block from the beach and about a 10 min drive to the cruise terminal.

 

Sunday we went to board the cruise. We were dropped at the terminal at 9am-ish and our bags were taken by the porters but the boarding process hadn't begun yet so we stood in line outside waiting to get into the terminal. This was only mildly annoying. At 10, we were allowed in and the check in process was easy and painless. It was a little discouraging to go from one line to the next to the next, constantly showing paperwork, scanning bags, getting cruise passes etc... instead of just having it all done at one spot, but whatever. The worst part was that instead of boarding right away, we were delayed by a surprise coast guard ship inspection so we had to sit in the terminal for over an hour waiting to board. The 5 kids went nuts but it was pretty much unnoticed in the chaos. Fortunately we brought an old iPad and loaded some of DD's movies into it so we let the kids watch that.

 

We also brought our bottles of wine w/o issue. We had two rooms for the 4 of us and brought 4 bottles. I'd heard it was 2 bottles per stateroom and not 1 bottle per adult but was prepared to have 2 of them confiscated. No issues.

putting the stroller to good use:

 

Boarding was easy and I went immediately to guest services to line up a babysitter for the evenings. I had heard that you want to get there asap since they don't have a dedicated babysitting staff but that it's crew members that volunteer to babysit in their time off and it's a crap shoot on if you get one or not. We had 8pm dinner every night and our girls go to bed at 7 so we were hoping to get one every night so we didn't have to do dinner in the cabin. My brother's kids planned on going to the kids club every night.

 

DH and the rest of the crew went to windjammer for lunch and I met up with them. After lunch we parked on the pool deck with ice cream and waiting for the rooms to open. They were open at 1:30 and we went right down for naps for the girls and to settle in.

 

Pools: we chose this cruise pretty much for the pools. DD2 is still in diapers and almost all ships prohibit swim diapers in their pools. I totally understand this. I knew it would be hard for her to see the pool and not let her use it and this ship had a special baby swim area where swim diapers were allowed. The pool deck was expansive. They had a solarium where there was an adults only pool and two very large 24 hour hot tubs, then the regular pool area which was very large by cruise ship standards. It had one side with a heated pool and the other side was not heated. They had a large movie screen above the pool where they showed movies in the evenings and the heated side always seemed well populated after dark. There were also multiple hot tubs here. Then the other swim area was a giant splash pad and pool called the H2O zone which was seriously amazing for kids. The water depth was probably 1-3" and there were tons of spray features to play in. They also had a regular pool attached to this area and a large, round pool with a current that kids could float in like a lazy river. Well, more like a lazy donut since it was just one large circular tank. This is also where the baby splash zone was. It was about 2" deep and heated water in a separate area of about 5' x 10' for the babies. Unfortunately it looked directly at all the fun stuff the big kids got to play with. Oh well. Oh, there were also two hot tubs attached to the kids splash zone which was mystifying to me, but whatever... they were well used. I guess it was nice not having the kids overrun the adult hot tubs?

 

Baby splash zone where my older daughter crashed the party:

I did notice that they were very good about enforcing the rules on things like running, no diapers in the regular area, no big kids in the baby area (we were immediately corrected after the above picture of my older one in the baby area) and even chair hogs were managed fairly well. Seats were saved w/o a concern for the rules but pool staff were great about removing items if told they had been there longer than 30 min.

 

Rooms: we had two connecting balcony rooms, 7612 and 7614. The girls slept in one with two twin beds (we got a pack and play after a couple nights when DD1 fell out of bed) and we slept in the next room and this worked really well. It was more expensive, obviously, than putting us all in one room but ship rooms are so small and it was also great having two bathrooms. We had the divider on the balcony removed to make on large balcony and the girls loved it. The balcony was also glassed in and the railing was 4' high so we weren't constantly freaked out about one of the girls shoving their heads/toys/etc through slats and losing things or getting stuck, or about them being able to climb up. We obviously never let them out there w/o one of us though and they were unable to open the door in their room but we blocked it anyway. We felt like we had plenty of room and storage.

 

Food: food was good. We were used to Celebrity cruises so this was a minor downgrade on food but nothing I would consider bad or even really mediocre. Every meal was very enjoyable with the exception of one fish dish that was too salty. The windjammer was excellent by buffet standards and we always had good meals there. The only complaint is that it closed completely after lunch and before dinner and reopened at 6pm. The girls usually eat dinner around 5:30 so we were left with only one option for their dinner every night. The Promenade deck had a cafe and pizza parlor that served pizza and sandwiches all day. There was also a starbucks, cupcake shop and Ben & Jerry's down there for extra fees. The main dining room was good and we enjoyed sampling many dishes. I was addicted to the cheese rolls served at dinner. We did not pay to eat in a specialty restaurant.

 

Drinks: They highly encourage beverage packages to make things more all inclusive and there are various levels of what you can drink on the packages. The soda package provides people with a plastic travel cup that gives them unlimited use of the Freestyle Coke machines throughout the ship. We did not get a package. I got a diet coke about every other day but mostly stuck to the free stuff like iced tea and lemonade. The girls had milk at most meals which was also free. We drank a lot of booze. :) Daiquiris and beers poolside daily and then we would frequent the wine bar and english pub on the promenade level quite a bit. The dining room did not have sommeliers which was surprising to me. Instead the assistant waiters handled drink orders and bottle service. The nice thing was they have no corkage fee anymore for the wine you are allowed to bring on board.

 

Ports: we went in with NO plans for the ports since we have little little kids and didn't know what would be possible. Coco Cay port was canceled due to high winds not allowing us to get there. In St. Thomas we could see the open air buses (like trolleys) from our balcony and DD1 decided she needed to ride on one so we went down and got on the first one which happened to be going to Magan's Bay. We spend a few hours there, had lunch, then came back to the ship for naps and the rest of the day. St. Maarten was less impressive but that's because we really didn't do much. We took a water taxi to the shopping area and walked around for a bit and came back. It was really hot out and the shopping area seemed seed and dirty and everyone wanted to braid the girls' hair and rent us beach chairs. We went back to the boat after an hour and enjoyed having the ship to ourselves. Getting on and off in ports was a breeze.

 

Kids Club: DD1 LOVED it. We would drop her off and they gave us a phone so they could reach us if they needed to. She always went running in and bouncing back out, happily. They put on a talent show the last day which was long, terrible, and adorable at the same time. They also have a "nursery" for 6m-2 years for the non-potty trained crowd at $6/hr. They encourage reservations since it fills up. We never saw more than two kids there though during the day. We didn't go much since DD2 absolutely HATED it and the few times we tried, they called us within 20 min on the phone to tell us she was pissed and not having it. Oh well. We expected that. She isn't nearly as much of a joiner as her sister is.

DD2 with face paint from the kids club:

[AnneinSand]

Babysitting: We managed to get babysitters every night but the first night. They send two crew members to your cabin and it is $19/hr. We had them from roughly 7:30-10ish most nights and it was usually confirmed around 2pm that day. A couple of the sitters we had worked with the kids club and two of them were ice skaters and performers in the shows. We have no real experience with how they babysat since they never even saw the girls. They showed up after the girls were in bed and sat in our adjoining room with the door shut. You can hear through the door and DD1 would come knock if she needed anything. We told DD1 they would be there so she wouldn't be alarmed but she never woke up. The sitters sat in our room and watched tv, read or used their computers.

 

Promenade: We spent a lot of time here. They had a Dreamworks parade the first day that was a big hit with the kids. We got there early and got a table at Bull and Bear pub to have drinks and ended up with a great spot to watch the parade. We went to Vintages every night before dinner and had excellent service there. It seemed to be hardly used at all considering the ship had 4k+ passengers. We rarely saw more than 4 other people there. We really enjoyed putting my DD1 in a Captain's uniform, strapping a go-pro to her and letting her wander (supervised) around the Promenade deck. She had a ball and got lots of attention. My girls also LOVED the jewelry store.

it's milk, not coffee, promise:

 

 

 

Parade:

 

 

 

Casino: smokey. meh.

 

Staff: everyone was so overwhelmingly friendly to us and the girls. DD1 in particular loved getting so much attention.

 

Departure was quick and painless. We were off the boat in minutes of our scheduled time and through customs in about 10 min. Our transportation back to the airport was right there waiting.

Edited March 31, 2016 by Host Jacquelyn
removing oversized photo

[AnneinSand]

also, freedom and navigator side-by-side:

 

[Clarea]

Nice start, beautiful photos!

[AnneinSand]

Spa experience was great. I got their special Top to Toe that included full body massage and facial for 75 min. I was in heaven.

 

We had one glitch with the dining room that I forgot to mention. We realized shortly after booking that our travel agent was TERRIBLE. There were SO many issues from getting everyone's name and DOB correct to making payments and linking reservations. It was horrible. Before we left, I made sure we all had linked reservations via RCL website and that we were all listed as late seating for dinner. Get there and we all have different tables and our reservations are not linked. Awesome. TA claims it was RCLs fault, RCL claimed it was his fault. We made it work. The kid didn't eat in the dining room so we all (8 adults) crammed into an open 6 person table and it was fine after the hassle was over.

[AnneinSand]

this is getting a little disjointed... I apologize. I am just posting things as I remember them now. sorry!!

 

Ice show: we went to the 3pm ice show on day 3 and it was great. It was upbeat and entertaining and they chose great songs. It was not olympic quality but great overall.

 

Art: OMG. the art they had for sale was mostly horrifying. And people bought it! with money!

 

example:

[LuCruise]

Oh my gosh...what adorable kids. Fantastic photos. Looks like you had a great cruise.

 

You mentioned the DreamWorks parade. Did you do anything else DreamWorks related?

[Keith1010]

Enjoying your review/report.

 

Keith

[AnneinSand]

Oh my gosh...what adorable kids. Fantastic photos. Looks like you had a great cruise.

 

You mentioned the DreamWorks parade. Did you do anything else DreamWorks related?

 

We saw characters around the ship occasionally and the kids enjoyed that. They also had some interaction with DreamWorks stuff and characters in the kids club. One day was Shrek activities, another Kung Fu Panda. We did not do the DreamWorks breakfast but were on the main level of the dining room for breakfast a couple times while it was going on and could hear the excitement. Sounded fun.

[AnneinSand]

oh and we did have some excitement on board. In St. Thomas a bride (dress and all) and her group had to run to meet the boat and made it by moments. We had a medical "emergency" where a gentleman apparently had too much to drink in the hot tub in the solarium and passed out. And one night/morning someone had gone missing. Around 2am in the hallways the announcements began assembling the crew but no details were given. Then around 4am the chimes rang IN the cabins and someone said "good morning" but then it was cut off. About 20 min later this happens again in the cabins and there's an announcement asking for so-and-so to please report to guest services immediately. Then nothing after that so we assumed he was located but it definitely gave everyone on the ship a VERY early wakeup call. Speculations ran high on what the backstory was. My guess was a 17 year old kid that was in someone else's cabin having a grand time and his mom demanded the ship locate her missing minor asap. Turns out I wasn't too far off. It was a 15 year old that was sleeping in his grandparents' cabin but the mom didn't know. You'd think this would have been one of the first places she called before waking up the whole ship.

[LuCruise]

We saw characters around the ship occasionally and the kids enjoyed that. They also had some interaction with DreamWorks stuff and characters in the kids club. One day was Shrek activities, another Kung Fu Panda. We did not do the DreamWorks breakfast but were on the main level of the dining room for breakfast a couple times while it was going on and could hear the excitement. Sounded fun.

 

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like your kids had a great time. I love how family friendly these ships are.

[lettrich]

That picture is based on the rainbow bridge poem.

[saltycat]

can u tell me if the transportation included car seats for the kids. Thanks

[mollyeilis]

"They put on a talent show the last day which was long, terrible, and adorable at the same time."

 

Aw, there was nothing horrible about it. Even the little ones who couldn't be heard over the song were wonderful. It takes HUGE amounts of guts to get up like that; as the staff said, everyone got First Prize!

 

 

"I'd heard it was 2 bottles per stateroom and not 1 bottle per adult but was prepared to have 2 of them confiscated."

 

It's 2 per stateroom.

 

 

I saw your daughter with the gopro, so I'm probably in your videos.

 

 

I saw your 5 year old nephews at the talent show, and they were ADORABLE.

 

 

I had horrible sleep on this cruise, and was awake for the PAs about the missing person. I was so glad that our cruise proceeded normally, which meant they had found the person.

 

Didn't wake up everyone, though; DH and DS slept right through it all!

 

 

The dog painting was purchased by the owner of a natural pet supply store in WA. They were sitting near us, and we ran into them once or twice later.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for your report.

[AnneinSand]

can u tell me if the transportation included car seats for the kids. Thanks

 

Yes, we requested car seats and were picked up in a minivan with car seats at the airport. We had to install them but it only took a minute.

[AnneinSand]

"They put on a talent show the last day which was long, terrible, and adorable at the same time."

 

Aw, there was nothing horrible about it. Even the little ones who couldn't be heard over the song were wonderful. It takes HUGE amounts of guts to get up like that; as the staff said, everyone got First Prize!

 

 

"I'd heard it was 2 bottles per stateroom and not 1 bottle per adult but was prepared to have 2 of them confiscated."

 

It's 2 per stateroom.

 

 

I saw your daughter with the gopro, so I'm probably in your videos.

 

 

I saw your 5 year old nephews at the talent show, and they were ADORABLE.

 

 

I had horrible sleep on this cruise, and was awake for the PAs about the missing person. I was so glad that our cruise proceeded normally, which meant they had found the person.

 

Didn't wake up everyone, though; DH and DS slept right through it all!

 

 

The dog painting was purchased by the owner of a natural pet supply store in WA. They were sitting near us, and we ran into them once or twice later.

 

Ahhh, this makes so much more sense. I was picturing it hanging in my living room.

 

As far as the talent show goes, I loved every second and was so proud of those kids! I do mean terrible as in hilariously cute and amature. (if that makes sense?)

[handbellplayer]

I would love to read this review, but the posts are very wide on my screen, so that I have to scroll and scroll right to read them. What can I do to make it easier to read? Is there a setting somewhere?

[Host Jacquelyn]

Love the pictures of your daughter with the Go Pro and Captain's outfit. Too adorable.

[sg1phileshipper]

Your kids are very cute. Love the pic of big sis giving a kiss to little sis :). Thanks for your review, enjoyed reading it

 

 

Cindy

[MiniChunks]

I am interested in the babysitting program. We will be on Freedom in just over a year, and are bringing our twin 5yr olds and 8yr old. Are there limitations on how early/late you can request a sitter? Was the $19/hr based on the amount of children you had?

[BillOh]

Sunday we went to board the cruise. We were dropped at the terminal at 9am-ish

 

I can tell I am going to enjoy your review, but WOW! What shuttle service would drop off customers at 9am? With the group you had to manage that could be awful and worse if the weather was bad! Our shuttle from the Radisson left the hotel at 10:30 and that was perfect.

 

Thanks in advance for the rest of your review.

[AnneinSand]

I would love to read this review, but the posts are very wide on my screen, so that I have to scroll and scroll right to read them. What can I do to make it easier to read? Is there a setting somewhere?

 

 

I am not entirely sure :( It looks like it is one picture in particular that is making things so big... If no one has any other suggestions for me, I'll just remove that one.

[AnneinSand]

I am interested in the babysitting program. We will be on Freedom in just over a year, and are bringing our twin 5yr olds and 8yr old. Are there limitations on how early/late you can request a sitter? Was the $19/hr based on the amount of children you had?

 

The babysitting is only available when they happen to have crew that volunteer. I would imagine if you requested during the day they would make an effort to find someone free then to do it. They do have the kids club during the day though which is free and probably more appealing for early hours than being stuck in the cabin. For late, we had a few hard stops at 10pm for the sitters but usually we were told they could be there "late" and for us to let them know when we were planning on being back. I assume it's like a regular sitter at home, they can stay late within reason before it becomes overnight care.

 

I was under the impression that the fee (19/hr) was per stateroom/family. They do send two sitters at a time but we were not informed of a limit on number of kids.

[MiniChunks]

Thanks for the info. Our kids are a little older than yours, so we would really only use the service once or twice for a "date night". Other than that the kids can hang out with us and watch the shows etc. good to know.